


Constant

by CrashHale



Series: Riverdale Bingo Summer 2020 Submissions [4]
Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Divorce, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Guilt, Mild Smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-01
Updated: 2020-08-01
Packaged: 2021-03-05 20:00:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,965
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25651006
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrashHale/pseuds/CrashHale
Summary: Sweet Pea helps Veronica through her separation by doing what he's always done - being her friend. But maybe this time she needs more than just friendship from him.
Relationships: Veronica Lodge/Nick St. Clair (past and mentioned), Veronica Lodge/Sweet Pea
Series: Riverdale Bingo Summer 2020 Submissions [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1837360
Comments: 9
Kudos: 26
Collections: Riverdale Bingo Summer 2020





	Constant

**Author's Note:**

> Hi friends,  
> This is for my Riverdale Bingo Summer 2020 'First Love' square. I was going to use it for the 'Rebound' square but I couldn't do it! Unedited.
> 
> Warning: there are mentions of cheating, but not by our main characters.

Sweet Pea had been in love with Veronica since he was nineteen, when Hiram Lodge saved his life by giving him a job that kept him out of trouble. 

He was thirty-five now and not much had changed. He still lived in the spacious apartment above the 20 car garage on the Lodge estate, he was still Hiram’s personal driver and at times, personal security, and even though he didn’t see much of Veronica anymore, he still loved her. 

She had long ago gotten married to her high school sweetheart and had two daughters just as beautiful and talented as she was. He only saw her now during family events or when they visited. 

That’s why, when he went out onto his balcony in the morning for his coffee, he was surprised to see her car in the driveway. She must have arrived either late last night or early this morning. Maybe she had business with her father. 

Even though he was close with the Lodges, considered them his family even, he didn’t want to intrude. Hiram didn’t have anywhere in particular he needed to go today so Sweet Pea had planned to do some maintenance on the cars and stick around just in case he was needed. 

Of course, even while he did his morning workout, showered and got the day started, he still couldn’t stop thinking about the fact that Veronica was here. Would he get to see her?

With his head under the hood of a car, deep in thought, he hardly heard the presence of another person in the wide open garage. Not until she said his name and made him smile at the sweet melody she always gave it. 

God, she was so beautiful. Always. 

“Veronica,”

She smiled too. But something was sad about it. He also noticed she was in much more relaxed attire than usual. She didn’t live here anymore so she was usually done up and not so casual whenever she came around. 

“I’ve been waiting for you to come in and say hello,” she said, tilting her head.

He wiped his hands on a dirty rag. “I thought you were discussing business with your father, I didn’t want to disturb you guys,”

Her smile widened, more genuine now, and stepped in closer to give him a hug. He always thought how sweet of a contrast her actions were to her appearance. Even if she was dressed in a ball gown right now, she would still hug him hello. She may look like she cared about appearances, only because she was so beautiful, but in truth she really didn’t care. 

He took the moment, which was lasting longer than usual, to hold her and breathe her in. It was stupid that he still loved her. She had a life, a husband, kids. He was still a pathetic bachelor, never keeping anyone around too long. They were lucky if they surpassed a one night stand. 

“You okay?” he asked, sensing something was wrong. 

She didn’t speak for a moment, letting him hold her for a second longer before she pulled back. 

“Um, yeah… I mean, I guess not,”

His frown deepened, his concern for her now as visible on the outside as it felt on the inside.

“I moved out of the house,” she sighed.

It may have been hard to believe, but that did worry him. Sure, he never liked Nick, but he wanted Veronica to have a good life. Nick was meant to give her that.

“What do you mean?”

He watched her sigh again, visibly pulling back as she tucked her hands into the back pockets of her jeans. She looked like she might cry any second and as he took a step forward she moved back. 

A smile tried to hide her obvious unease. “Did you eat yet?” she asked. 

He shook his head, surprisingly not interested in food right now. 

“I can ask Esme to make us something,”

“Come on,” he said, having a better idea. “Come upstairs and I’ll cook for us,” The new housekeeper didn’t like him much. He was staff and staff shouldn’t be treated like family. But the Lodges always had made him feel like family. He’d never had that as a kid.

Veronica smiled, like she liked the idea better than going into the main house too, and he let her lead the way upstairs, letting herself into his unlocked home. 

.

Veronica instantly felt better as soon as she was in the inviting warm glow of Sweet Pea’s home. She hadn’t come into his apartment often, it was his space and she never wanted to invade it, but she did like it here.

“Make yourself comfortable,” he told her, heading into the kitchen.

She followed and sat on one of the stools by the counter, taking deep breaths to try and stay focused on her current surroundings. She watched Sweet Pea as he washed his hands in the sink and then began moving around the kitchen with ease.

“Did you have the kitchen redone?” she asked. It looked new and it was much easier to talk about than what was really on her mind.

He flashed her a smile and she was sure he didn’t mean for it to be as handsome and charming as it was. It made her sad. He was a good guy and he had been dealt a bad hand in life. She was always so glad her father had taken him in.

When she was seventeen and he first moved onto the estate, Veronica had been taken aback by her attraction to the slightly older dark and handsome boy. She had been with Nick for a year at that point and had her life already planned out. She wasn’t meant to find other boys attractive.

Sweet Pea was only more handsome as he aged and she always wondered why he hadn’t settled down. Did he feel too loyal to her father and didn’t want to leave? Or was it just that he liked having his options open?

“I did it while your parents were on their France trip last year. Needed a project to keep me busy,”

She looked around at the solid workmanship. She always admired how great he was with his hands. There wasn’t anything Sweet Pea couldn’t fix. When she had chipped her grandmother's antique makeup dresser, Sweet Pea had saved it and made it look like nothing had happened at all.

“You’ve always been so talented,” she mused, impressed by his cooking skills as well.

He was only making breakfast, but it looked much better than anything she could whip up.

That simple thought alone made tears sting the backs of her eyes. She felt so guilty for having left her girls behind, but she knew they loved their father way more than they loved her, so this was just easier for now.

She didn’t blame them. She wasn’t a natural at being a mother. She tried, she really did. She loved them more than life itself, but somehow everything she did wasn’t good enough. Their father however, could never do any wrong.

Her heart ached at her failed marriage. Even though he had been the one who cheated on her time and time again, for most of the years they had been married, she still felt like the one who messed it up. Maybe if she had been a better wife and mother he wouldn’t have gone looking for someone else.

She could sense Sweet Pea giving her little looks, as if making sure she was okay. When the food was done, she smiled down at the plate. He had made her a smiley face using eggs and bacon.

“If I ever told anyone you did this, they’d never believe me,”

To an outsider Sweet Pea looked like a bad guy, someone who could knock you out with one punch. He was tall and strong, and the tattoos made him look particularly bad ass. Her favorite were the roses on the backs of his hands. They were her favorite flower.

“Why not?” he teased. 

She narrowed her eyes at him, making him laugh, then began picking at her food.

After a moment of silence, he asked, “What happened, Ronnie?” and she wanted to break down.

She sighed, keeping it together as she began to speak. “Nick and I… we’re done.”

His dark eyes were concerned again. They had been ever since she met him downstairs. He didn’t need to be concerned for her. She made her own choices and now she was paying for them.

“What’d he do?”

A tear fell down her cheek. Although it did sting inside, knowing her husband had looked elsewhere for what she was meant to give him, she still felt like it was her fault.

“I don’t know, maybe I worked too much… I’m not a great mother and…”

“Hey,” he said, stopping her and reaching a hand over the counter to grab one of hers. “What are you talking about?”

“I found out he’s sleeping with another woman and when I confronted him about it, he said he wanted a divorce… Not that he wanted to work it out,”

That was the worst part. The first few times he cheated, he had been sorry and tried to make it up to her with expensive gifts. She too tried to make a better effort in their relationship, keeping things interesting, but he never was for too long. No matter how many romantic nights she planned, sometime after they got married she felt like he had fallen out of love with her.

Maybe she worked too much, made too much money… Maybe that wasn’t what Nick wanted in a wife.

“He cheated on you?” Sweet Pea asked, his hand warm on hers and she was glad for the contact.

She was ashamed and didn’t want to tell him it was more than once. What did that say about her?

She quickly wiped the tears that ran down her cheeks, wanting to prove she was okay. “We both decided I’d move in with my parents while we go through the separation,”

“And he gets the house?” Sweet Pea asked, sounding like he couldn’t believe it.

She shrugged. “The girls adore him. I don’t want to give them anymore reason to hate me,”

“They don’t hate you, Ronnie,” he assured.

She smiled sadly. “Scarlette’s teen angst where everything is her mother’s fault has started early,”

Sweet Pea moved around the counter and came to sit with her. “She’ll get over it, I hear all girls go through it,”

Veronica sniffled and smiled. It was true, she had given her own mother a hard time while she was growing up, but her father, despite the many bad things he had done, was never to blame. Being a daddy’s girl herself, she understood her own girls were the same.

“I just don’t want them to think I left because I don’t love them,”

“I’m sure they don’t,” he assured.

She nodded. They were close and Nick had agreed that she’d still get to see them everyday.

“It’s going to be okay,” Sweet Pea told her and she really wanted to believe him. It may be silly, but being around him did help.

.

Over the next couple of weeks Sweet Pea was really worried about Veronica. He could tell she was trying to hold herself together and be strong, but it was so obvious to him how stressed out she was over the situation. He didn’t blame her. He could only imagine how hard it must be, her whole life uprooted, not living in the same home as her girls.

She got to see them every day but he knew she still missed them every minute she wasn’t with them. There was a lot of guilt hanging over her head. He wished so badly that he could lighten her load. 

That’s why he spent time with her, the two hanging out at his place most nights for dinner. They’d always been friends and it was easy. For him it was also nice, getting to see her so much more, feeling like a part of her life. 

That night, as he moved around the kitchen with ease and finished up making their dinner, he heard her knock before entering. 

He smiled at her in hello. He felt bad that he enjoyed their time together, because he was sure she’d much rather not be in a position where she had the option to hang out with him. Being home with her girls was what she wanted more than anyway. 

“Just in time,” he said. “Take a seat. How was your day?”

He felt the heaviness in the air as she sat down, sighing but offering a smile. 

He frowned, putting the soup and salad on her placemat before doing the same to the one next to her.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, ignoring his food as he sat facing her instead. If only there was something he could do, he’d do it in a heartbeat, even if it was only to make her life better for a moment.

“I’m sorry,” she began. 

He reached his hand out to caress her arm. There was nothing to be sorry for. 

“I’m sure I’m such a bother and I’m sure you’d rather have another woman here to cook for every night,”

That was so far from the truth, she had no idea. 

“That’s definitely not true,” he assured with another smile. “What happened? Did you see Nick at the house?”

She shook her head. Their separation was hard, he knew, and Nick was the biggest idiot in the world. How anyone could hurt her like that he didn’t understand.

“It’s only been two weeks and the girls let it slip that they met her,” she said, clearly upset. 

Oh no, he thought. Nick really was an idiot. Sweet Pea had half a mind to go over there and beat him stupid, but he knew that wouldn’t help anything. 

“He’s an idiot, I’m sorry…”

She started to cry, and like always he wished there was more he could do than just hug her. 

This was a big deal. The asshole cheated on her then introduced the other woman to their daughters. It was insane and so wrong. 

Sweet Pea sighed as she continued to cry and he held her, letting her cling to his t-shirt. 

He really, really wished he could do more. He felt useless sometimes. 

While racking his brain for what that could be, a shift took place, making his heart stop and then race. 

Her hands were no longer gripping his t-shirt, instead they were now feeling the muscles of his back. Her cries had turned to small sniffles and the closeness of their bodies was suddenly very noticeable. 

He was sure he was imagining it. 

But before they even pulled apart, she looked at him and made the first move, her lips on his, salty with tears but sweet like rain. He’d dreamed about kissing her for so long. 

Groaning, he couldn’t believe he was pulling away. “Veronica…” he said in a tone that said this wasn’t a good idea. 

Her demeanor changed, shifting to confident as she stood only to step even closer to him. He was sitting on his stool so they were about the same height. And even though she had tears covering her cheeks, she so closely knew exactly what she was doing next. 

There was no way he was going to say no, not when her eyes were saying it all. She wanted him to distract her. And even though he knew it would break his heart when she no longer wanted him tomorrow, he stood, looking down at her for a moment. 

Then they were kissing again, much more urgent, the food forgotten, his hands roaming down her back and to her ass, squeezing and lifting her up easily. 

She moaned and he felt it through his whole body, moving them to his bedroom. 

“You sure?” he managed to ask between rushed kissing. 

“God, yes,” she replied, pulling his hair. 

He hissed and threw her on the bed, reaching the back collar of his t-shirt and pulling it off swiftly. 

He had seen other women give him fuck me eyes, but as soon as he saw Veronica doing it, he forgot about the others. He knew he was attractive, but being attractive in her eyes meant so much more.

They both managed to get her pants off in a rush, and soon he was on top of her, between her legs, her limbs clinging to him desperately as he took her lips again, kissing her hard so all they’d feel was each other.

Maybe this was wrong, maybe she was only letting him do this so she could forget about her cheating husband, but he couldn’t manage to care right then, not when her hand was pushing between them and into his jeans.

“Fuck,” he breathed harshly against her lips, as her small hand slipped in under his belt, jeans, and underwear, finding his rock hard erection.

“Yeah,” she breathed back, “take your pants off and  _ fuck _ me,”

He pulled away only long enough so he could get naked, watching as she took the rest of her clothes off, the most perfect thing he had ever seen, and right here laid out on his bed, for him.

He was back on top of her again, kissing her desperately, his mind pulling in every way, wanting her, wanting to please her, not knowing where to start.

“Please,” she moaned when his hurried kisses moved down to her breasts.

This was his dream woman and somehow he knew he’d screw it up. He knew this was the worst possible situation in which they could get together. She wouldn’t want him tomorrow. She’d regret this.

“Sweet Pea… I… mmm I want you,”

He knew what she meant, and even though in a perfect world he’d go down on her for an hour, right now they were both just desperate for the main event.

He reached between them and ran the head of his cock through her wet folds, turned on even more by the fact that she was there already too. So fucking wet.

Her dark eyes were looking up at him pleadingly and there was no way he could deny anything she asked.

“This what you want?” he asked lowly, pressing against her entrance.

“Yes,” she answered right away, gasping as he pushed in.

He fought not to close his eyes at the intense pleasure of it, instead watching her face as her eyes closed and mouth opened further.

“Fuck,” she breathed again and he took it as go ahead to move into her completely, pushing her legs further apart.

He slowed down long enough to kiss her cheek. “Okay?” he asked.

She opened her eyes then and nodded quickly. “Please, just move,” she whispered again.

Moving his face down to kiss her neck and shoulder, he began with a few slower, deep thrusts, before working his way up to what they both wanted, what they both  _ needed _ .

.

At some point they must have tired themselves out and fallen asleep, because the next time Veronica woke up, she was naked and more satisfied than she ever remembered being.

She looked at Sweet Pea next to her, biting her lip to keep the smile off her face. She didn’t deserve to be happy right now. But she was. 

Being with Sweet Pea had been something she’d fantasies for a long time, and even though this probably wasn’t the best time for it, she didn’t regret it. 

He was everything she expected, and more. She felt completely ravaged, something she hadn’t felt, maybe ever. After fucking her so hard she almost forgot who they both were, he spent the next hour going down on her, touching her, teasing her. She was begging him to fuck her again by the time he gave into her again.

She had never had sex that good, not ever, had never felt that connected to someone else. It was like he knew exactly what to do, exactly how to touch and hold her.

Thinking about how wonderful he really was, she turned to face him and looked at him through the dim light. He was on his stomach, his face turned to her. He looked so peaceful and she didn’t want to wake him, but she also wanted more, and she had a feeling he probably wouldn’t mind being woken up for  _ that _ reason. 

She gently touched his arm, letting her fingers trace the many tattoos. His body was incredible and she felt like a giddy school girl over that fact that she’d done what she did with him. 

It was stupid. She had so many other things going on, she shouldn’t have done this. 

He moaned and she bit into her lip. “Sorry,” she whispered.

He moaned again as he shifted so he was on his side facing her better. “It’s okay,” he said sleepily, “you okay?”

Those simple and yet incredibly kind words made a happy sadness wash through her. She nodded.

She could tell he was watching her curiously for a moment, before he sighed and moved his arm to wrap about her waist. “Listen,” he said.

She did, bringing her hand up to his cheek, where he turned slightly to kiss it. It made her smile, feeling sadder still. Her heart ached. She wished they had this sooner.

“You don’t have to explain, okay?”

She frowned, wondering what he meant.

“I know this is just a rebound for you, I know this isn’t…”

She shook her head, quickly realizing what was going on in his beautiful head. “Sweet Pea, no,” she breathed. “I mean… if it was just sex for you… well I know you’re not a relationship guy… but you’re not a rebound for me. I think you’re amazing and you’d never be just a rebound,”

He just watched her, letting her finish.

“I know this isn’t a good time, with everything that’s going on with me… But I… I’ve always loved you, you’re my family and you’re not… you’re  _ not _ a rebound,”

Never. 

She’d never just use him like that. The timing was bad but she wasn’t sorry. She wasn’t sorry for being with him or for letting him make her feel the things she did when he was with her.

He nodded, his expression not giving much away. “Okay,” he simply said, and she wasn’t sure if he believed her.

“Did you want this to be just a rebound?” she finally asked, after a few quiet seconds of him just holding her waist and her caressing his cheek. Maybe it wasn’t her, maybe it was him who didn’t want this and was looking for an easy out.

He frowned. “This might be too forward… but fuck it… I’ve been in love with you since I met you. I don’t regret a second I get to spend with you. And I definitely don’t regret anything we did tonight… I just don’t want it to be something you’ll feel more guilt over,”

“Maybe I should feel guilty,” she said. “And in a way, I do… I know my girls are going through a lot with the separation and I have so much going on… but I don’t regret a second I get to spend with you either,” she repeated back, smiling wider when he smiled too.

“Thank you for being here for me. It’s really been helping… I’ve been meaning to tell you,”

“I’ll always be here,” he told her, his arm wrapping tighter around her. “Always, I’m never going anywhere,”

She believed him. He’d always been her constant. 

  
  
  
  



End file.
